Hello and salutations! Perhaps you have noticed the same trend I have, as it pertains to WWE’s main roster? It’s about the way the company uses former NXT Superstars. In case you haven’t already guessed what I’m talking about, here’s a 5-step formula which goes a little something like this:
- NXT gains an attractive free agent from the independent scene or another promotion.
- They push him/her as a huge deal, usually resulting in a significant championship reign or regular airtime
- Sometimes, with little prior warning, they are called up to Raw/SmackDown.
- Promoted superstars enjoy some (or none) time in the spotlight, before Dave Meltzer sends out a report that Vince McMahon has “soured” on them. They are rarely or no longer seen on TV.
- After a while, the aforementioned either end up a) buried for years, b) released, or c) sent back to NXT. A & B are more common than C.
As we know, NXT has served for years as a developmental brand. Even now, although some suggest otherwise (like Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano), the primary goal for most NXT men & women is to some day wrestle full time on Raw & SmackDown.
In doing so, they can earn more money & enjoy increased exposure on a bigger platform. The point of NXT is to mold new commodities, or to take current wrestling stars and adapt them. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, but there are reasons it doesn’t always work out.
Lemons & Limes
The biggest difference between the brands is that NXT caters to the maturer professional wrestling fan. That’s not to say younger children don’t watch NXT… some do, but the vast majority of minors stick to Raw & SmackDown because that’s all they (or their parents allow) have time for. Vince McMahon knows this and adapts the product so the superstars can fit in to his vision of catering to the family dynamic.
It makes sense from a business perspective, as it becomes a generational thing where parents hand down their watching habits, and then their children pass it on to their kids and so on. Yet, with a change of philosophy between brands, comes a divide between what Triple H’s NXT thinks is entertaining and what Vince is looking for. Upon getting promoted, former NXT talents rarely grow beyond the shadow of the personalities they previously portrayed, as many of their character traits are stripped away.
Sometimes, they go as far to be transformed in to something entirely different. Nikki Cross for example, went from playing a wild lunatic in the ravenous stable Sanity… to overly grinning alongside Alexa Bliss as her excitable, coffee drinking bestie. And that’s what we’re looking at today. A list highlighting former NXT Superstars who soured in Vince McMahon’s eyes, after finding considerable success under the guise of his son-in-law’s black and gold brand. Why could he not understand their appeal? And was they deserving of the sour treatment?
Let me know your thoughts below. But before we begin, let me say that the rankings are in a “top 20” format, but were loosely chosen and shouldn’t be taken too literally. Do you believe I missed anyone? Please let me know in the comments, thanks.
#20: Ember Moon
It’s been almost a year since Ember Moon was sidelined with an injury. But before this, she went on a streak of 5 straight losses on TV. Considering she’s a former NXT Women’s Champion, having defeated Peyton Royce, Kairi Sane & Nikki Cross to become the new champion after Asuka vacated at the end of her record-breaking 510 day reign, she served as a stopgap between her and Shayna Baszler.
Ember Moon wasn’t the most popular Women’s Champion in NXT history, but she was appreciated for her look and athleticism. She wasn’t hated at all, and I believe fans didn’t mind her taking over the mantle; although carrying the ball after Asuka would always be a tough act to follow. With one of the most impressive finishers in the game, it seems she has all the tools to succeed.
However, when she got to the main roster… after a brief time working the gimmick, management stripped it away and she became a regular person cosplaying as Ember Moon. She started talking like a normal person, lost her unique contact lenses, and no one knew what to do with her. Moon was called up way too soon and has been injury prone ever since.
#18-19: American Alpha, Chad Gable & Jason Jordan
This tag team was red hot! So you can imagine my surprise when they got to the main roster and won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship, only to be quickly split up from each other. Not so long after, Jason Jordan became Kurt Angle’s “son”, while Gable was buried hard despite receiving high praise from his fans and peers.
And then what… they turned Gable in to “Shorty G”?! This is a prime example of WWE taking something that was already getting over, destroying it, and transforming whatever’s left in to something unrecognizably cartoony. What’s wrong with American Alpha?? And what did they have planned for Jason Jordan before his serious injury??
#16-17: Authors Of Pain
Pairing them up with Seth Rollins seemed like a great call. However, what’s criminal is that the AOP already had a winning formula in NXT. With Paul Ellering managing, they already had someone who could talk and suited them more than anyone else could. They used Ellering for a little while on the main roster, til the AOP ditched him and decided they wanted to talk for themselves. And um… they could talk for themselves, yet they soon had Drake Maverick managing them?
After losing the Raw Tag Team Championship, they went away for a while because of an injury. Upon their return, it looked like they would talk for themselves again; but then they got paired up with Seth Rollins. Do you see where I’m going with this?? Give them a manager and stick with it… or don’t. Stop. Start. Stop. Start.
#14-15: The Ascension
Konnor & Viktor’s treatment on the main roster is borderline criminal. If you weren’t watching NXT back in the day, it’s hard to describe how amazing this team was as the NXT Tag Team Champions. They were dominant and had everything going for them, including incredible chemistry and a unique look. But it went downhill fast when they got called up and had their image changed to something resembling the Road Warriors (AKA) Legion of Doom and Demolition.
They never recovered and spent the next five years collecting paychecks for very little airtime outside of “Main Event” & “Superstars”. When you look up the term “buried” in the dictionary, a picture of these guys should be featured next to Zack Ryder. It’s painfully obvious that Vince had zero faith in them ever being a draw.
#12-13: The Revival
As a traditional throwback tag team, The Revival worked some of the best tag team matches in the history of WWE. Their encounter with DIY (Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano) was voted “Match Of The Year” in 2016. It’s no secret that these guys put on some of the best work we’ve ever seen, but it didn’t translate to the main roster for one key reason. Vince. Hates. Wrestling.
He cares more about the entertainment aspect and doesn’t care if you can put on a match of the year candidate. The only thing that draws in his mind are gimmicks like the Street Profits, or love stories between Otis & Mandy Rose. Working your asses off night in, night out, raising the bar in tag team wrestling, is not something McMahon understands. It doesn’t draw because WWE has always programmed its audience to enjoy a limited display.
You aren’t allowed to set a higher standard, because then everyone else has to up their games. When it seemed apparent that The Revival didn’t want to play ball creatively, management began tarnishing their image by shoehorning them in to embarrassing segments with The Uso’s. The Revival is a perfect example of a product that works supremely well in NXT, but struggles on Raw & SmackDown because they aren’t programmed that way.
#11: Ruby Riott
It feels like a long time ago now, but I considered Ruby Riott the best worker in the NXT Women’s Division. As a face, whether she left the ring as a winner or loser, Ruby delivered the goods every time. But you don’t see it on the main roster because it’s not about working quality matches. Ruby’s always been more of a wrestler than an entertainer, but I think she fared well as the leader of The Riott Squad.
For whatever reason, WWE split up the stable, and she’s been nowhere ever since. And it doesn’t make much sense, because whenever I bring her up in our social media posts, it’s not surprising that she has a ton of followers. Yet, it doesn’t help her position within the company, and I kinda’ wish she went back to NXT or to another company altogether. At least they’ve started using her again lately… I guess.
#10: Tye Dillinger
Going by Shawn Spears in AEW, the artist formerly known as Tye Dillinger was known as the “Perfect Ten”. His gimmick was so over that it got slightly annoying when some would chant “10!” at inappropriate times. And when he was called up in 2017, his popularity somewhat translated over from NXT. But WWE officials didn’t like it, they didn’t seem to understand the gimmicks appeal and wanted to squash it in a manner reminiscent to Fandango’s entrance music phenomenon.
He didn’t gain many wins on the SmackDown brand before picking up a hand injury. Dillinger requested his release when it became clear they weren’t interested in using him regularly on TV. It’s a shame, because NXT helped him go from a lowly jobber to a solid mid-card act, but the main roster still saw him as nothing more than an enhancement talent.
#8-9: Sanity, Eric Young & Killian Dain
There’s a reason I only included two members of the Sanity faction here. First, Nikki Cross was always the bright spark and WWE were quick to separate her from it. Second, Alexander Wolfe is a decent worker, but he was just a lackey and it shows in his work with Imperium on NXT UK. What desperately needed to happen here, is that Sanity got a fair shot to prove it belonged. But I know exactly why it didn’t, and it’s all in the presentation.
I know for a fact it’s because Vince hated the entrance music, the maniacal laughter, and the way they entered the ring. Everything about Sanity told me it wouldn’t last on the main roster. So I was extremely surprised when WWE announced they would be, but not so much when they disappeared entirely. Eric Young is one of the best promo guys anywhere, and Killian Dain is a beast of an athlete. Again though, it’s a matter of WWE officials being unwilling or unable to comprehend their upsides.
They sent Killian Dain back to NXT, while EY spent the rest of his WWE career as an enhancement talent. They were former NXT tag team champions, but Sanity never got a fair shot to do much of anything. The only winner to come out of Sanity was Nikki Cross, and she’s nothing compared to the character she was. A WWE.com article blamed their lack of success on SmackDown being: “in the same division as The New Day, The Bar, The Usos and The Bludgeon Brothers”.
#7: Bo Dallas
Some might not comprehend this, but there was a time when Bo Dallas was the #1 heel on NXT. He was so hated that fans would turn their backs on him as the NXT Champion. How many heels can elicit such a reaction in this day and age? Dallas had an amazing upside, he didn’t need to be too gimmick-y; he just had to be a slimy, annoying character.
Although I loved it and many others didn’t… he debuted on the main roster as the inspirational Bo Dallas. Telling everyone to “Bo-Lieve”, I understood what they were going for with the gimmick. It didn’t catch on though, because they didn’t stay the course. I think it could have gotten over, but one likely reason it didn’t was his physique. We all know Vince loves his guys to work out hard, but it seems Bo wasn’t putting in the time to be a major player in his eyes.
I think he’s got as much talent as his brother Bray Wyatt, but WWE loves presentation first and foremost. They tried pushing him again later with the whole “B-Team” thing, but for whatever reason they didn’t stay the course. He’s still contracted to WWE, so they must see something in him. Probably keeping him on the books so other promotions can’t pick him up? That’s what I bolieve anyway.
#6: Ricochet
Only in WWE, can you take someone so athletically gifted and job them out to Brock Lesnar in mere seconds. Ricochet is a former NXT North American Champion and Dusty Tag Team Classic winner, but this amounts to nothing because natural ability means diddly squat. When you have Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson singing his praises years before WWE thought about him signing a deal, you know he’s got to be good. But instead of being billed as this eras Rey Mysterio, Vince quickly soured on him and figured he wasn’t worth a dime.
And that’s a shame, because we all know he’s a babyface WWE would do well to push. So for now, til they figure out what to do with him, Ricochet and Cedric Alexander are teaming together for one sole reason: they are athletic wrestlers with little to no character. And is it their fault? Or is it more WWE’s for not giving them anything to work with? At this rate, I’d rather they went back to NXT and bolstered its tag team division. Maybe Triple H’s crew can figure out the missing piece to Ricochet’s puzzle?
#5: Tyler Breeze
“Hey look! It’s Tyler!” — I’m still reeling over how far Breeze has come since the days when the NXT Universe proudly chanted “Breeze Is Gorgeous!”. The gimmick couldn’t have been anymore perfect for him. And while he was in NXT for what felt like forever, it feels like the only place he’s truly appreciated. Upon debuting on the main roster, WWE immediately had him in a feud with Dolph Ziggler; but I think it was too much too soon. Essentially, they threw him in to the deep end with no safety net and expected to emerge.
Once it seemed like he wasn’t as great as Vince had hoped, they quickly buried him and he’s not since reached the same heights. Ok, I tell a lie… he & Fandango enjoyed a brief moment as The Fashion Police. But again, a gimmick that was gradually getting over was stopped through no fault of his own. This time, it was because Fandango’s severely injury prone. They are slowly getting back to their old antics in NXT, but just how long will it be til Fandango is injured, and Tyler Breeze is left to rot on his own again?
#4: Samoa Joe
“Joe’s Gonna’ Kill You!” – I always knew WWE wouldn’t completely understand Samoa Joe’s appeal. I appreciate the fact they gave him a run with Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman, and was at least considered to have a reign as WWE or Universal Champion. He’s exceptional on the mic and in the ring, and all it would’ve taken was some consistency. Violating the wellness policy went against him pretty harshly, and for now he’s been relegated to the announce table.
As a former NXT Champion, United States Champion and Dusty Tag Team Classic winner, it seems Samoa Joe has peaked in WWE. It’s difficult to imagine him getting any further than that, but it’s unfortunate because he’s worth it. I’d much rather see Joe tearing it up in the ring than announcing any day of the week. There are few guys who can get the heat he does, as he’s not afraid to take things to the next level. Listening to him on commentary feels like a waste, but if WWE isn’t willing to push him as a serious threat? Then I can’t blame him for wanting to improve on a job he could do for the next decade or two.
#3: Robert Roode
“Glorious!” – Remember when Bobby Roode was a pivotal part of Impact Wrestling and NXT? Pepperidge Farm remembers. But don’t be telling casual fans of the main roster he was. As far as they need to know, Roode is a cheap, mid-card Rick Rude wannabe with a hint of Flair. He’s so average… that his best chance is to serve as a lackey to King Corbin of all people. There’s nothing glorious about that!
I’m sure there are some fans who would love to see Roode earn a decent run in WWE, to show everyone his true potential. He’s not getting any younger though, and time is quickly ticking away. I feel like he missed out, as he came to WWE when so many others were thinking the same thing. I think he didn’t stay in NXT long enough to prove his worth. He almost got a push after debuting a new look (with a mustache), but Vince quickly soured on the idea. At this point, it’s probably just about the money to him. Which we can’t blame him for… considering he worked hard for 18 years to get a WWE contract.
#2: Shayna Baszler
The entire premise of this article centers on the recent news of Vince McMahon “souring” on Shayna Baszler. Apparently he doesn’t like her ring style, and that’s a shame because I always thought that was her best quality. Everything she does feels more real than how others do it; I’d totally believe her taking on men with the arsenal she’s gained over the years.
Also Read: Latest on Shayna Baszler’s WWE Status
She’s definitely a better version of Ronda Rousey, only without the drawing power behind the name. I also love her character because she’s totally brutal. That’s what we need more of these days, we need villains who aren’t afraid to push limits and get people really hating them. No trying to impress bullshit… just go out there and destroy fans favorite superstars and make them cry. There’s so many who hate Baszler with a passion, and fewer who can truly appreciate what she brings to the table.
I’m in in the minority who believes she should be one of the top women in WWE, but the way they booked her on the way to WrestleMania wasn’t right. She was way too dominant, detracting from her build because fans were more annoyed with WWE for how they booked her as such. I don’t get why Vince has soured on her, but it doesn’t surprise me. It’s not like it hasn’t happened before… so many times. Somewhere, Triple H must be facepalming.
#1: Finn Balor
If I had to name the one superstar who suffered the most on the main roster, it’s Finn Balor. Seriously, it feels like NXT Balor isn’t the same guy. Main roster Balor is like a shadow pretending. The “Demon” gimmick didn’t save him from mediocrity either. I mean, we know they started him off well. Winning the Universal Championship was great, and he was on the right track to stardom. But after returning from injury, everything which followed was a train wreck, and it took him going back to NXT to find his mojo again.
Even if he went back to Raw or SmackDown someday, I have zero faith in management using him any better than Triple H’s NXT. Some guys are unsuited for sports entertainment, and Finn Balor seems to be one of them. I’m not convinced that Vince McMahon gets his appeal, but we know Triple H does. Even if Balor isn’t the NXT Champion at the moment, it’s only a matter of time. I’m digging his “Prince” character as it’s hard to define if he’s a face or a heel. Some like to call the undefined “Tweeners”, so let’s go with that. NXT needs him to lead the way, and there’s few out there who can help to build fresh stars in the way Finn Balor can.
Conclusion
With the unique philosophies outlined in the introduction, it goes to show that WWE is a company which can often struggle to long-term plan the careers of its superstars. NXT builds them up, WWE throws them on to Raw & SmackDown, and the cream of the crop rises and survives. Those who can’t deliver are buried, released, or sent back for further development. And it’s got to be frustrating for NXT superstars and Triple H especially, because we see how much hard work and passion they put in to building them.
Sometimes it can take months, even years of dedication to mold someone in to something WWE can use. But all that work can come crashing down in an instant, as it depends on the landscape and the way management perceives the talent. Doing well in NXT means nothing, it’s what you do afterwards which matters; commentary has stated this several times on TV. There are some miracle stories though, like Keith Lee for example. He’s enjoyed moments with Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar and is still frequenting NXT. I’m not saying no one can flourish on the black and gold brand though. After all, most of the current roster helped to build NXT from the ground up.
What is apparent is the contradiction between the way NXT builds its superstars and what the main roster produces. It’s surprising they haven’t tried to change their formula for a better success rate. What do you think? Should NXT change the way it works to give its superstars a better chance of succeeding? Or does it need to keep doing what they’re doing, so it can take away viewers from other shows? Please let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading!
